Sphinx Cat: Facts About Them

The sphinx cat or sphynx was the first “hairless” breed recognized by feline associations. Currently, there are two varieties of this feline. One European and the other North American, so its length ranges from medium to medium-long.

Although it seems that it is not the first “hairless” breed that exists, since there are historical documents that record bald cats that came from New Mexico. They apparently were raised by indigenous tribes.

Regarding the specific origin of the sphinx cat, it is known that in the 1960s, the first specimens arose naturally from a litter of French Siamese cats. In which several hairless puppies were born.
Later, several breeders decided to start developing a bald or hairless breed. Both in America and Europe. All Sphinx bloodlines descend from two families of natural mutations, which are:

Dermis and Epidermis (1975) in Minnesota, USA: raised by a married couple of farmers. They decided to call their first hairless cat “Dermis”. A year later, they cross it with another, which also had no fur, called “Epidermis”
Bambi, Punkie, and Paloma (1978) in Toronto, Canada: which were found on the street and raised by Shirley Smith. They later gave one of them to be crossed with a white Devon Rex cat and continue the offspring.

It is mistakenly called “Egyptian cat”

The first curiosity that we want to tell you is that this feline is a misnamed Egyptian cat because its fine and slender appearance makes it resemble the cats painted by the Egyptians on the vessels and walls.
The truth is that the sphinx cat does not have any Egyptian origin. Sphinx cats should not be confused with the Egyptian Mau breed.

Their eyes are very big

One of its most outstanding physical characteristics are its striking eyes since they are very large compared to the rest of the face. They are lemon-shaped and are stretched towards the ears. In addition, the separation between them must be wide, slightly larger than the size of an eye.

As for the color, the ideal thing is to match their skin, although the most striking are those with yellow eyes. The ears are also very large and open. Therefore these 2 characteristics make its detractors consider it a strange breed. Some even compare it to bats.

Sphinx Cats are prone to FIV

According to several studies, the sphinx cat is more prone than other breeds to contract the feline immunodeficiency virus(FIV), which turns out to be the equivalent of the human immunodeficiency virus(HIV).

In cats, contagion occurs through deep bites or blood transfusions from an infected kitten to a healthy one. Until now, it has not been proven that it can be transmitted sexually. And, also, in the case of pregnant felines, if it is possible that it was transferred to their puppies during pregnancy or lactation.

Inspiration for movies and series

Its peculiar appearance has made this cat appear in the cinema and in some television series such as in Kid vs Kat,  Friends, Cats and Dogs 2: The Revenge of Kitty Galore, The Secret Life of Pets, etc.
Even the shape of his head and eyes served as inspiration for film director and producer Steven Spielberg to create his famous aliens.

Actually, a Sphinx Cat has fur

Although at first glance we believe that it is a “bald” cat, the truth is that its body is covered by very fine, short, and even hair. It’s practically imperceptible to the eye or to the touch. A Sphinx cat has a texture like that of peach skin or suede.